I got a call today. "Mrs. Rios?", "Yes" I said.

"It’s X from blah blah law firm. We need you to come back to NY to be deposed again." Hyperventilation begins to occur. My hands start to shake. My heart sinks. "Again", I said. "I was there for two days in October". "Sorry Ma’am, so when can you come back." And so the conversation went.

Have you ever been deposed in a lawsuit?  It is defined as:

a.  a pretrial interrogation of a witness; usually done in a lawyer’s office

b. An oral statement made before an officer authorized by law to administer oaths. Such statements are often taken to examine potential witnesses, to obtain discovery, or to be used later in trial.

c. The pre-trial testimony of a witness given out of court with no judge present. The witness is placed under oath to tell the truth and lawyers for each party may ask questions.

d. The testimony of a witness, under oath or affirmation, taken outside of court in which lawyers ask oral questions of the witness. The testimony is usually reduced to writing and duly authenticated and is intended to be used in a trial of a civil action or a criminal prosecution.

Just so you know, in all these definitions, they forget to mention how terrible they make you feel. How they are trying to dig up dirt on you so that you look like you are lying and only want to sue to get rich or something. I am so dreading going back to look at this lawyer’s face (opposing counsel). Pray you never have to go thru one of these. Pray for those that do…it is a very humiliating experience.